TAMPA, Fla. — King State, a local coffee shop and bar, has been fighting for months to stay open, and on Thursday, the owners and supporters brought their concerns to the Tampa City Council about how a construction project is driving business away.
“We currently have four-lane closures. Nobody’s going through our street. We live in like a dystopian, dead-end cul-de-sac now, where before, we were in a bustling, rush-hour thoroughfare," said Tim McTague. "So how is a business supposed to survive when nobody can get there?”
It’s the reality King State co-owners Tim McTague and Nate Young have been grappling with daily.
“We understand cities, that you know, construction has to happen, updates have to happen, but when you do that, what’s the point if, after all this, we can’t even be here?” said Young.
We first shared King State's story Wednesday on ABC Action News.
In September, a multi-agency construction project started on Floribraska Avenue as part of an effort to upgrade water infrastructure and improve safety, putting King State right in the middle of a construction zone.
They said it’s led to confusion over where to go and not knowing if they’re open and that the construction has crushed profits.
“We realized not only are we deep six figures down from last year’s Quarter 4, but we’re actually five figures down from the Quarter 4 during COVID in 2020," said McTague.
McTague said they filed a claim with the city for lost revenue, and on Thursday, they and several supporters took the issue to the City Council.
“This is one of those businesses that we should be fighting for," said one person during public comment.
“I don’t want to lose this business in my neighborhood," another said during public comment.
“If the city doesn’t step in and make us whole, then we have to pass that down to our staff with layoffs, trimmed hours, and our creditors, and that’s not our fault, but it’s now our problem," said McTague during Thursday's public comment.
City Council members recognized when you see a business affected so adversely because of construction, it’s heartbreaking, pointing out that businesses have taken a lot of hits over the last few years.
Council Member Lynn Hurtak told ABC Action News she made the recommendation to the Water Department to get better signage and possibly a map for how people can get to there, though she explained City Council doesn’t have any power over the staff of the city.
“When you see a sign that says road closed, local traffic only, me personally, I think that means oh, well, if you live there, you can go down it, but it doesn’t make you think oh, this business is open, and I'm local traffic," said Hurtak.
ABC Action News reached out to the City of Tampa to see what the Mayor and staff may be able to do to help the local business struggling because of construction.
The city sent the following statement:
"We have hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure improvement projects underway throughout Tampa, more than has occurred in many generations, and the vast majority don’t generate complaints like King State’s. Inconvenience and disruption are unavoidable with so much long-deferred infrastructure construction, but Mayor Castor told senior staff members that it is unacceptable and inexcusable to have neglected to install better directional signs for a business seriously impacted by a road closure and to ensure the owners were fully looped into what was coming. We need to do better.
City officials have spoken with the owners of King State and connected them with the City’s Risk Management team so that they can file a claim for lost business income.
The work along Floribraska Avenue is a multi-phase, multiagency project known as the Floribraska Complete Streets project that includes upgrades to our water infrastructure and improvements to pedestrian, bicyclist, and driver safety. The work in the area is critical to improving the services our residents and businesses depend on.
Construction to replace aging waterpipes started in September near Nebraska Avenue. The current workaround King State is expected to be finished by late February or early March. Construction on the mobility portion of the project will start in May and is expected to be less disruptive than the current.
The contractor leading the project is JVS Inc., which has followed all the notification requirements in its contract. Throughout the construction project, JVS has worked in the area six days a week, including during the New Year’s holiday weekend, and maintained access to King State. They are creating additional signs that will show customers that King State is open and help drivers better navigate current closures."
